This Will Not Stand

 Visit #1605, Saturday 20 June 26, 8:45-11:35 a.m., 4.4 miles, 7.0 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 70s, gloriously sunny, dry, breezy, with puffy clouds.

On Tuesday evening I rode my mountain bike to Hubbard Park to cover some graffiti I found at the Halfway House during last week's hike. Next time I need to use more painter's tape.

On that same bike ride, as I entered the trails at the south end of Merimere Reservoir, I encountered a couple people fishing AND a family of six SWIMMING in the reservoir.

This fellow had just landed a nice sized bass.

The family came out of the water to check out the bass our fisherman had just caught and left their belongings.

On Thursday I again rode to Hubbard Park to apply weed killer to various spots.

After applying weed killer to this stalk,  I stepped back to take a photo of it. As I looked down to my right while walking backwards, I spied a copperhead no more than a foot away slithering into the rocks at the base of the foundation. Good thing I was looking where I was going!

And I saw yet more people swimming in the reservoir on Thursday.

But the illegal fishing was not a one-off thing either. During Saturday's hike, I found these two gents fishing in the same spot as the other fellow on Tuesday.

The fellow above and I had a terse exchange when I pointed out no fishing was allowed in the reservoir. He didn't seem to have a problem with fishing there. Another hiker told me these two had camped out overnight in the park, and told me where their tents were, but I could not locate them.

My real goal on Saturday was at Castle Craig. A birch tree on the island of grass had fallen well over a year ago and just looked unsightly to me. 

The other two branches are probably dying as well but I'm not touching them until they fall.

I cut the fallen tree into manageable pieces and leveled off the two stumps.

Loaded everything into my truck, shuttled it a couple hundred yards, and tossed it into the woods.

And while I was up at Castle Craig and before the crowds arrived, I decided to clean up the area so it would look good for Saturday.

What prompted my decision was seeing this abandoned stroller, which I took and disposed of as well.

Earlier this month I mentioned my work with Japanese Knotweed and how I noticed some stands of it growing in Hubbard Park.

During Tuesday's ride to the park as I picked up Reservoir Avenue from the Chamberlain Highway, I noticed a stand of knotweed that had apparently been treated with weedkiller.

And during Saturday's hike I noticed, and I'm assuming this; the water department (versus the parks department) aggressively went after the knotweed at one of the locations, by the retention ponds. Looks like they used a combination of cutting and weed killer, based on the color of what's left. Compare that to the Before photo. Was it coincidence, or does the Meriden Water Department follow my blog?! 😊

Finds

 Saturday brought relief from the week's humidity. A hike worth looking forward to.

Visit #1604, Saturday 13 June 26, 6:00-8:35 a.m.

You may notice a change in the blog. If you don't figure out what it is, you'll find the answer at the end.

As the summer heats up, early morning starts are the prescription to keep it bearable.

Enduring the humidity of the previous days was the Meriden Parks Department. Last week I mentioned the grounds around the Halfway House needing an early summer mowing. I sent a request to Chris Bourdon and he didn't waste any time having the area trimmed. Had it not been mowed it would look abandoned. My thanks the Chris and his staff, and I'm sure hikers appreciate it as well.

This short trail leading to a dirt parking area was really getting squeezed by the vegetation. Below is a Before photo; I gave the section a little trim to open it up but forgot to take an After photo. Mirror Lake is in the background.

This birch tree continues to be a popular posting location for one particular person who has a chip on their shoulder about me. Can't please 'em all.

Stay tuned; we'll see if they actually follow through and cut down this birch tree.

On the I-691 walkbridge, I found and removed Cat Graffiti #38 since November 2016.

It's become something of a Where In The World is Carmen Sandiego thing for me.

On the trail I find these religious tracts nailed to trees from time to time.

Nearby I found this prayer of thanks note. I've found them before, such as this one I found in November 2022.

 This is what I found Saturday. They're written by the same person who knows I have an anus.

Can't decipher their handwriting? I'll translate for you best I can:

"Good morning universe. Thank you for the nice warm days, cool nights. Thank you for all the things I have. Thank you for the few friends I have and the ones that use me and don't appreciate me. I'm sad I have no one to hike with me anymore and I'm mad at those telemarketer people who continue to call and annoy me please can you make them stop. I'm xxxxx for a xxxx home and happiness. Thank you."

In addition to that note, I found this memorial card at the south end of Merimere Reservoir.

It's the third one I've found for Elaine, at the same spot, having found one in May and one in August of 2023.

Someone is scattering them at parks and similar locations all across the state.

Reaching the road to Castle Craig, I found this bent branch just barely poking in to the road. I couldn't pull it down, but I COULD trim it, so I did.

While enjoying the newly trimmed Halfway House grounds, I noticed this graffiti.

I'll give you the link. I can't make sense of it; maybe you can. I'll cover it soon.

Down at Merimere Reservoir, I found this empty container of Canadian Nightcrawlers.

I didn't find any hats in the container as seen in the picture, no toques, not even a hockey stick, eh?

And if you haven't figured out yet what's different in the blog the answer is, the time.

I've become something of an amateur spelling and grammar nerd and have always looked for a source of accurate journalism composition. Recently I discovered the Associated Press Stylebook.

I learned I've been reporting the time incorrectly. The horror! For those who have been driven nuts by my error, you can relax now.

Japanese Knotwood

 Visit #1603, Saturday 6 June 26, 6:00-8:15AM, 3.6 miles, 1.0 lbs of litter.

Temps in the upper 50s, sunny and moderately humid.

Last week  I mentioned helping a neighbor begin the removal of a Japanese Knotwood infestation in his back yard. I recalled seeing something similar in Hubbard Park but never had a second thought about what it was; I thought it was a typical plant and not the invasive weed it is. Now I know better.

And as promised last week, here are photos of the stands of Japanese Knotweed in Hubbard Park.

On the left it is across from the little outbuilding near the water treatment plant.

This stand is on the Soap Box Derby track.

And this stand is across from the retention ponds.

To educate yourself on Japanese Knotweed you can reference THIS information from the University of Connecticut.

During last week's hike I overlooked some graffiti I spotted two weeks prior. I took advantage of a bike ride during the week to make up for my daydreaming.

Here it is in mid-erasure, which took all of 30 seconds. The finished product is non-existent, if that makes any sense.

On that same ride I picked up the trails and found some more of our vandal's red hearts. Those are numbers 12 and 13 for this year. In addition, I found Cat Graffiti #s 35 and 36 since November 2016.

The cut tree ends you see are from a fallen tree I removed from the trail in April 2026.

Here's everything dutifully covered.

Keeping with the "red heart" theme, I removed this sign from a tree. I wonder who it's intended for...

Crossing over I-691 via the walkbridge, I discovered Antifa visits Hubbard Park.

I spied some new survey markers on Hubbard Park land adjacent to West Main Street. I did not disturb them. If I recall, there was talk at one time of constructing soccer fields on this land. I wonder if the markers and the soccer fields are related.

I removed Foam Sticker #26 of 2026.

I also found Cat Graffiti #37 since November 2016, and covered it.

All that removal stuff might seem depressing so I hope I can redeem myself with the following:

The Halfway House is in need of its mid-summer trim. I'll pass the suggestion on to the parks department.

Last week the Meriden Soap Box Derby Club held an event. The parks department supplied trash cans.

As of my hike one week later, they were not removed.

While these two were close by and would easily remind parks workers to remove them...

...this trash can all by its lonesome was further up the track and likely to be forgotten. It cried for company.

I introduced them to each other.

Another Meriden Soap Box Derby event is scheduled for later in June. 

While doing research for this blog entry I learned the Meriden Parks Department's web site has a handy link showing all the facilities available and the ability to request a reservation. Very nice; the parks staff is to be complimented for their effort.

A Calm Saturday - NOT!

 

This was a day of opposites; the sky and water were turbulent while trail activity was mellow. Sort of.

Visit #1602, Saturday 30 May 26, 6:25-8:45AM. 4.4 miles, 3.0 lbs. of litter.

Temps in the 40s, very breezy and clearing from overnight showers.

I started my hike on the trail behind the daffodils and was quite surprised to encounter a raccoon, which I only noticed when I heard a high pitched, low volume hiss. Raccoons are usually nocturnal so at first I thought it might be rabid, then guessed it may have given birth and was protecting its babies. My second suspicion turned out to be right.

I considered taking a photo of the raccoon but I am hardly as talented as St. Francis of Assisi, and I immediately moved on whereupon -

- I picked up my Find of the Week.

Up and over the highway I hiked, and further up, to the road to Castle Craig. But I walked the road down, and picked up litter along the way.

Reaching the sharp curve at the bottom of the road, I found, and removed, Cat Graffiti #34 since November 2016. I imagine the "artiste" is trying to make them difficult for me to remove since I had to precariously stand on a guardrail to reach it.

And speaking of counts and removals, add Foam Sticker #25 for 2026.

This weekend I helped a neighbor remove a stand of Japanese Knotweed. Until this week I had never heard of this aggressive, difficult to remove weed so I had to study up. Only then did I realize there is a stand of it IN HUBBARD PARK, down by the retention ponds. I'll have to photograph it soon.

My neighbor was sorely lacking in accurate information (and patience) on how to eradicate this. I gave him a lot of homework to do, and a bottle of weedkiller.